Eagle-eyed GTPlanet user queleuleu has spotted a yet-to-be-announced car that will feature in the Gran Turismo Sport roster — the Toyota S-FR racing model. The photo featured above shows a clearly modified version of Toyota’s concept car in GT Sport’s ‘Scapes’ mode being photographed against an urban environment.
The image was spotted within a massive presentation for the Computer Entertainment Developers Conference (CEDEC) 2016. Crafted by Polyphony’s own Hajime Uchimura, the presentation dives deep into the math behind colour representation and recreation, using Gran Turismo Sport for numerous examples. If you can read Japanese, we imagine this is quite the peek behind Polyphony’s curtains, so to speak.
The S-FR was technically playable in Gran Turismo’s last outing, featuring in a special GT6 demo at the Tokyo Motor Show last October. At that time the official word was that the car “would be coming to the Gran Turismo series in the future”. There was confirmation the regular S-FR would make it’s debut in GT Sport in August when it was captured during some off-screen gameplay at Gamescom.
The racing model of the S-FR was created by Toyota’s Gazoo Racing and is essentially a further evolution of the original concept S-FR. The little car is a proof of potential more than anything else. Stripping the car down with a carbon-fibre grille and a vented bonnet, it’s definitely one of the more aggressive small vehicles created by Japanese manufacturers in recent years.
Toyota’s goal for the base version is to challenge the Mazda MX-5, so one would assume the racing model is a potential rival to the MX5 Cup Car which is also included in GT Sport. Perhaps we could see some Mazda vs Toyota events in GT Sport’s online events section when the game eventually arrives at some point in 2017.
GT Sport is due to be showcased at Tokyo Game Show this month, so we’ll be on the lookout for any new cars or tracks shown off. Stick to GTPlanet for the latest on GT Sport.

Unless you call a particularly large chunk of Earth that you reside under “home”, you’ve by now heard that Gran Turismo Sport has been delayed to 2017. The news meant players looking forward to experiencing the first current-gen GT game this holiday season would miss out, but word out of Johannesburg suggests the wait may be a comparatively short one in the world of Gran Turismo delays.NAG Online got some seat time with GT Sport this past weekend at rAge 2016, the largest gaming convention in South Africa. Contributor Wesley Fick had both positive and negative impressions of the game — impressed by the menus and sense of speed, less so by the ‘dumb’ AI — but far away the most interesting aspect of the article is the release window. According to NAG, Gran Turismo Sport will be arriving on shelves this coming January.
The big reveal comes care of Sony reps at the event, according to Fick right here on the GTPlanet forums. If true, this is quite the surprise for a number of reasons. January is only two months after the original mid-November release: surely that would have been a better announcement than the vague 2017 statement we received at the end of summer.
It should be noted that January is also a rather untraditional month to release an AAA-level game. Missing that lucrative holiday retail window is unfortunate enough, but Sony must have a reason for launching so closely to it instead of waiting for the more usual early spring period.
If GT Sport really is coming in the first month of 2017, we should expect the game’s marketing push to restart quite soon to begin occupying important real estate in gamers’ minds. It definitely makes us wonder what may be in store from Polyphony at December’s PlayStation Experience in California.
Encouragingly, NAG also reports GT Sport will launch with day one support for both the PS4 Pro and PlayStation VR. Sony (briefly) showed off the game in the PSVR launch trailer, so perhaps that experience too is closer than we may have originally thought.
We’re very curious to see if/how Sony responds to this news. Keep an eye on the ‘Planet as the story develops.

We all remember Fishermans Ranch dirt track, don’t we? Doubtlessly it was one of the main highlights this past August at Gamescom, as Polyphony gave a name to one of the dirt tracks set to appear in GT Sport. Being part of the series since the earliest days, this racing domain will play an important role in GT Sport’s diversity. Therefore, we’re happy to share the new gameplay footage recorded during 2016 Warsaw Gaming Week by MotoGamesTV.
As in the previous video seen this summer, the main star of the show is the Subaru WRX Gr.B Rally Car. It takes almost three and a half minutes to lap the track, despite the car’s obvious raw power. Although the presentation doesn’t offer anything new we haven’t seen previously, we can get a better idea of the technical aspects thanks to the increased quality of the recording. As usual, off-screen gameplay makes it almost impossible to get a bead on the audio side of things; to judge that aspect of the game we’ll have to wait a bit longer.
If you would like to check other GT Sport gameplay videos recorded recently, we’ve looked at both the Hyundai Genesis Gr.3 at Tokyo Expressway and Alfa Romeo 4C at Brands Hatch recently. Looking to test-drive the game yourself? You may get the chance this month at Paris Motor Show, Paris Games Week, and Riyadh Gamer’s Day. You can get all the info on those events from this article.

With many details still being kept in the dark regarding Gran Turismo Sport, the full car and track roster expected in-game remains a mystery. Since the original info blowout at the Copper Box event in May, there have been occasional car reveals (Hyundai Genesis Gr. 3, Kazunori’s own BMW M6 GT3) and a single new track shown off (Fishermans Ranch). In terms of official announcements, Polyphony has remained silent on that front since the game’s delay to sometime in 2017.
However, a recent Instagram post and interview by Portuguese racing driver and 2013 GT Academy winner Miguel Faisca could hint at some of the new content we may be privy to in the coming months. The interview in question recaps Miguel’s recent race at the Estoril circuit during the European Le Mans racing series.
Aside from talking about his 6th place finish at the event, Faisca’s (translated) comments about preparation are the big takeaway: “Gran Turismo Sport is fantastic for the accuracy of the details of the cars and the tracks where we can compete, coupled with graphical improvements, they get closer and closer to reality.”
Curiously, the Circuito do Estoril has not appeared in previous games. At least, not officially: our community did build a pretty good replica in GT6. The Ligier JS P3 Faisca pilots in LMP3 has similarly never featured in the franchise. Miguel’s specific car also races in a PlayStation and Gran Turismo livery.
On it’s own, this wouldn’t mean too much. We’ve seen countless race cars plastered in GT logos that have never appeared in the series. But taking this in combination with Miguel’s comments about GT Sport car accuracy, it certainly seems like it could be more than a simple general statement. The Ligier also uses a Nissan-developed, 420BHP V8, so there’s definitely a basis for the speculation given Nissan’s close ties with Polyphony and Gran Turismo.
With Gran Turismo Sport’s extended focus on Motorsport, Estoril and the LMP3 Ligier would definitely be unique additions inspired by a member of the GT Academy alumni. With the continued public showing of Brands Hatch and the Nordschleife, it can’t be long until we see what other real world tracks will host racing in GT Sport. Here’s hoping that the ex-Formula 1 circuit and LMP3 machine find a home in the latest Gran Turismo title.

Gran Turismo Sport Will Be Playable at Reboot Infogamer on November 8–13

October 31st, 2016 by Michael Leary

Aside from the recent news of Ayrton Senna having a presence in GT Sport, details on the game continue to be far and few between since the announcement of its delay. With November just hours away, it appears something may be on the way as residents of Croatia will soon have their own opportunity to try the game for themselves on the show floors of Reboot Infogamer.
Managed by the same team working on the Croatian video game magazine Reboot, the event has attracted attention from the likes of Blizzard, Activision, Warner Bros., and of course Sony — all eager to show their latest work. First spotted by community member citroengt1, the gaming show has made an announcement on their official Facebook page, revealing GT Sport will playable during the duration of the event at Sony’s PlayStation exhibit.

“GT SPORT on REBOOT INFOGAMER – Although the release of the new popular car racing simulator Gran Turismo is expected until 2017, in only 10 days on Reboot InfoGamer 2016, one of the biggest gaming shows in Europe, which occurs in Zagreb from November 8 to 13 you will be able to play exclusively on the Sony PlayStation show floor.”

Held at the Zagreb Fair in Zagreb, Croatia, the event will take place on Tuesday, November 8 and will conclude the following Sunday, November 13. Keen observers will note the PS4 Pro’s release date falls right in the middle of those dates (November 10), though it remains to be seen how much of a presence Sony’s new powerhouse will have at the event.
If you’re planning to drop by Reboot Infogamer don’t forget to share your experiences in our Gran Turismo Sport sub-forum.Hats off to citroengt1 for the tip!PS4 Pro Event In London November 2–3 Will Feature GT Sport

November 1st, 2016 by Kyle Patrick

The PS4 Pro is due to land on shelves across the globe next week after being unveiled back in September. As expected, Sony is gearing up with a press-only event focusing on the new hardware, and it kicks off in London tomorrow.
The news first came via German Youtube channel Inside PlayStation in a video that has since gone private (original link here). According to GTPlanet member AKps3, the IP crew stated they would be getting hands-on time with the Pro and a small brace of titles. The original description accompanying the video had a brief list of which games would be available to test-drive:

Horizon: Zero Dawn

Days Gone

Gran Turismo Sport

NIOH

Call of Duty: Warfare Infinite

If true, this will mark the first time Gran Turismo Sport has been playable on Sony’s new system. While many may have expected this — especially after the delay to 2017 — it’s nonetheless exciting to hear it will be playable so soon. This also seems to corroborate the comments from Sony South Africa about the game arriving with day one support for PS4 Pro.
The PS4 Pro’s extra horsepower includes an upgraded GPU and boosted CPU, allowing the system to render titles closer to true 4K resolution (most will use a form of upscaling). It should also provide smoother and/or faster framerates, which will be ideal for GT’s VR support.
Mark Cerny and various developers will be on hand at the event as well. It should be noted members of Polyphony will be in Las Vegas during the week, taking care of the 2016 GT Awards. We shouldn’t have to wait long to hear about what’s found in the event, though: rumours around the ‘net point to an embargo on PS4 Pro details being lifted on November 7.
Excited about the PS4 Pro possibilities? Head on over to the GT Sport forum section to discuss this and more about the game with other fans.Thanks to AKps3 for first posting the news!

Well that didn’t take long. Sony’s dedicated PS4 Pro event got underway earlier today in London — after news of it broke earlier this week — and details are already starting to leak out. Most pertinent to sim-racing fans is the news that GT Sport will be taking full advantage of Sony’s new powerhouse, as confirmed by Kazunori Yamauchi himself.
With the original release date set only days after the PS4 Pro’s November 10 availability, it was long-assumed that GT Sport would be compatible with the new uber-PS4. Nonetheless, to have it confirmed by the Polyphony president puts another feather in the cap of the anticipated racer.
The news first broke via GameOver.gr. The Greek gaming outlet posted the following images to its Facebook page, showing the GT Sport stand at the event, Kazunori presenting all of the features of the Pro version of the game, and the man himself playing the game:

For those not wanting to squint, the five features mentioned in the presentation are 4K, 60FPS, HDR, Wide Colour, and VR. At this point, it isn’t clear how the game will achieve 4K resolution, though the leading suggestion is the checkerboard upscaling approach found in other titles such as Horizon Zero Dawn. We’ll have to wait for more details to emerge from the event before we have a clearer vision of just how GT Sport will benefit from the Pro.
The mention of 60 frames-per-second will surely please racers that took issue with the occasionally-inconsistent framerates of the PS3-era GT titles.
Meanwhile, HDR recently appeared in the genre via Forza Horizon 3. HDR provides life-like lighting that literally needs to be seen to be believed (as the majority of PC monitors and smartphones currently don’t support the feature). Sony has already committed to bringing HDR to existing PS4 consoles via a patch.
This is further confirmation that the game will support the recently-released PlayStation VR. Of course, we’ve known about that from the beginning…
Keep an eye on GTPlanet for more news on the event as it develops, and don’t forget to swing by our GT Sport forum section for all the latest discussions on the game.Hat tip to Saidur_Ali for first spotting the news!

With all the new information coming straight from the PS4 Pro Event in Big Ben’s hometown, we’re getting our first real view of GT Sport post-delay announcement. As we learned yesterday, the game will support 4K resolution and HDR via PS4 Pro. Now, some more light has been shone on the exact nature of these specifications.
According to Stefan over at TheSixthAxis.com, the game doesn’t actually run at a true 4K (2160p) resolution on the Pro, but instead at 1800p with checkerboarding. Kazunori notes the human eye has trouble differentiating between the two while in motion, which is the reason why Polyphony opted for the latter option and the improved stability it would bring.
The preview also briefly touches on the physics of the game. As Stefan tells it, the handling’s overriding characteristic is one of neutrality, through both the McLaren 650S (on tarmac) and Mitsubishi Evo X (on dirt) he drove. He does talk about the high-end Thrustmaster T300 used at the event, and expresses a desire for more feedback through the rim.
Rallying on the hardest difficulty proves difficult; racing through Tokyo, less so. “When I failed to control it around [the] Expressway,” says Stefan, “it was just a barrier or another car there to greet me and help me on my way.” Perhaps vehicular damage — with real consequences — is one of the yet-to-be revealed features Kazunori teased with the original delay announcement.
The “VR Tour Mode” would feature a similarly diverse pairing, with Audi’s R18 racer and the ND-gen Miata on offer (watch a short clip of the Mazda here). The virtual reality implementation garners positive remarks, comparing favourably to Driveclub VR. That game makes do with the vanilla PS4 — though it is set for a Pro-enabling patch — and the question of how much of a difference the consoles make is brought up:

“There’s a feeling that, while PSVR is a very good system, the power of the standard PS4 holds it back and the PS4 Pro should unlock something extra, something a little bit more special. Without the two base consoles side by side, it’s impossible to know how true that is for GT Sport’s VR – something felt lost in translation, but Kaz skirted round a question about if PSVR support would be a Pro exclusive feature.”

While Stefan stresses in the article comments that a translation mix-up really is the likely culprit, we’d be remiss if we didn’t point out one of the supposed tenets of Sony’s two-system approach is no exclusive gameplay features for Pro-enabled titles.
Hopefully, now that we’ve seen GT Sport running with VR on the uber-PS4, we’ll see it running on a regular system in the near future. All eyes on the PlayStation Experience, then…UPDATE: TheSixthAxis clarified some details for us on Twitter. The wheel used at the event was the Thrustmaster T300. The cars used in the 4K demonstration were the McLaren 650S and the Mitsubishi Evolution X, while the VR demo used the Audi R18 and the ND-gen Miata.

Last month, the GTPlanet community was quick to take note of what sounded like an improvement in Gran Turismo Sport’s vehicle audio design. Sure enough, amidst all the latest conversation about image resolution, HDR, and PSVR capability, a report from Sony’s PS4 Pro event in London seemingly confirms Polyphony Digital’s progress in the audio department.
“Unlike the digital drone of past Gran Turismo games it at last feels like you’re inside a complex, noisily mechanical piece of engineering,” Eurogamer’s Martin Robinson recounts. “Elsewhere, a replay featuring a bevy of prototype cars displayed a diversity of engine notes, from the turbo diesel whine of an R18 to the throatier V8 of the Toyota TS030.”
This is all rather promising for those who have longed for better sound effects in the Gran Turismo franchise. However, Robinson shares his findings with the caveat that these improvements are not on par with other racing titles, but still better than previous GT offerings.
It was in 2014, following the release of Gran Turismo 6, that Polyphony Digital publicly announced its effort to beef up its sound team. By 2015, the Sony studio had recruited Forza Motorsport Audio Lead Mike Caviezel to step in as its Senior Audio Lead. Recent observations regarding the improved sound presentation in Gran Turismo Sport demos may indicate that the impacts of Caviezel’s contributions are just now becoming unmuted.Robinson goes on to share that Kazunori Yamauchi, the creator of Gran Turismo, appeared especially proud of headway, as it relates to sound. At a point during a presentation, Yamauchi turned up the audio before admitting that there is “still more work to be done.”
This was not be the only curious comment Yamauchi provided at the event which, as a whole, spotlighted the future of PlayStation gaming.
“In terms of the release cycle for Gran Turismo, we’re on track as usual,” Yamauchi remarked to Robinson’s question asking what takes the team so long. Unfortunately, this case of being “on track as usual” is contradicted by a missed release date that once had Gran Turismo Sport scheduled to arrive this month.
On the other hand, fans waiting in anticipation for the release of Gran Turismo Sport may find solace in hearing from those other than Sony’s spokespeople that improvements are being made. Still, the platform afforded in London did not result in a newly announced launch date, even after a strange exchange at a South African gaming convention one month ago.
For the very latest in Gran Turismo Sport news, keep up-to-date here at GTPlanet and at our official Facebook and Twitter pages. Also, join the discussion in our Gran Turismo Sport forum.

With Gran Turismo Sport being shown off in gaming shows all around the world, off-screen gameplay videos are coming thick and fast. Last week we had a look at the SRT Hellcat on Brands Hatch in an off-screen direct audio capture, and MotoGamesTV have shared more sound-centric gameplay for us to get our teeth into. This time, it’s the Bugatti Vision GT on Northern Isle Raceway — Polyphony’s fantasy oval exclusive to GT Sport.
The race shows a mixed grid race that includes both Vision GT and LMP cars taking on the high-speed circuit. The driver cycles between different camera views in the race so we get to see some interiors shots of the Bugatti Vision GT. However, the true aspect of discussion from this video is the car sounds and engine noises captured directly from the game.
The notes from the engine seem very similar to the Bugatti Chiron as pointed out by GTPlanet user JTB10000. At 1:10 in the below video, you can hear the Chiron’s engine noise for comparison to the GT Sport gameplay. It seems like Polyphony have nailed what a direct rip of the fictional VGT would sound like (the Chiron is it’s closest real-life counterpart) when being raced.

Compared to the Hellcat audio capture, the Bugatti appears to suffer a bit in terms of replicating the gritty sound heard from engines in the real world. The audio is definitely an improvement on previous Gran Turismo installments, but perhaps it’s still coming through a bit too clean for what we’d expect to hear from the mechanical masterpiece.
With all aspects of the game still being a work-in-progress, perhaps the VGT’s sound capture is not yet completely transitioned to the new system and may get on the level of the Hellcat discussed earlier in due time.
Gameplay-wise, GT Sport looks as we’ve seen it in the other recent gameplay videos. There’s a distinct lack of damage and the race still takes place in the lightest of day, so it appears we’ll have to wait a bit longer to see the night racing Red Bull remarked upon earlier this month. Hopefully Polyphony are getting closer to showing us some race environments a bit less static than what we currently have.Bugatti built a real-world replica of the VGT, and it was bought by a Saudi Prince alongside the Chiron.

GT Sport continues to be in development without a release date in 2017 being specified. The new audio design is bringing the series forward in an area that the fans have been wanting improvement in for a good while. Eurogamer were impressed in their preview, here’s hoping we get to hear more from Polyphony’s new audio design system soon.
Head to our GT Sport forum section for the latest discussions on the game.

Although GT Sport is set to hit the stores sometime in 2017, it’s very much possible to catch the latest developments even now. Previously we learned things are improving in the sound department of the game. Judging the latest news, another class of cars is on its way.
It appears that Polyphony Digital has been recording the sound for the 2016-spec Lexus RC F Super GT machine. Racing driver Ito Daisuke reportedly drove the car in order to capture the sound for the team. Daisuke recently published the news on his personal blog and provided a photo showing a sound recording microphone being attached to the car. We’ve provided the Google-translated notes from the blog post:“The picture below is a microphone picking up running noise for Gran Turismo SPORT. I was worried that the microphone would run down at full throttle, but it was okay. The sound of the RC F GT 500 in the game. It would be nice if it could be represented in real.”
It has been reported that GT Sport will introduce multiple racing categories in order to keep mutual racing rivalry as close as possible: N-Series, Group 4, Group 3 and Group 1. Keen observers will notice absence of one category: Group 2. Having seen the latest news, it wouldn’t be unusual to see the Super GT class settling in as the missing chain link.
Super GT — or, as it was originally known to long-time GT players, JGTC — has been a mainstay of the franchise since the very first title. Cars from the series have appeared in every numbered game since, and many fans expressed concern with the apparent absence in the newest title. This development should ease those fears, though we’ll have to wait for an official confirmation from Polyphony before we know for sure.
We’re currently looking forward to the 2016 PlayStation Experience event. Running this coming weekend (December 3–4) in Anaheim, California, it will hopefully offer more news on GT Sport, especially as the game’s presence has been confirmed. Meanwhile, stay tuned!Special thanks to queleuleu for sharing the news!

The Acura NSX GT3 will compete in both the WeatherTech SCC and PWC in 2017. Image courtesy of Acura.

The 2016 PlayStation Experience held this past weekend brought us the new GT Sport 4K trailer, which confirmed a handful of new models in Polyphony’s racer. One of these was the road-going Honda NSX, the sleek successor to the legendary NSX of the 90’s. Though no racing model was spotted in the trailer, the latest find hints that one could just appear in GT Sport.
Instagram users Lanilanitorres and Otakusquadpodcast shared photos of the various cars Polyphony Digital brought to Anaheim. The first photo below focuses on the new Acura NSX GT3. It shares the same twin-turbo 3.5L V6 engine as the road-going model, though it’s shorn of the three electric motors.
The GT3 machine also finds three less cogs in its gearbox, with the expected 6-speed sequential transmission taking up shifting duties. Naturally, the car features a full complement of extended aerodynamic parts, all made to meet GT3 regulations. Considering GT Sport‘s current Gr.3 has no representative under the Honda/Acura banner, it’s likely the NSX GT3 could play this role.The NSX GT3 as spotted at the 2016 PlayStation Experience. Image posted by Lanilanitorres on Instagram.

The second photo captures a total of three car exhibits, one of which is particularly interesting to GT Vision project supporters: the laser-powered Chevrolet Chaparral 2X Vision GT. For the first time since its official debut people attending the conference this year were able to take a closer look at the car. Another familiar vehicle lying nearby was the Mercedes-AMG GT3, which featured heavily in the latest game trailer. Riley Motorsports’ #33 entry for the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship will fly the Silver Arrow flag in 2017, driven by both Ben Keating and Jeroen Bleekemolen.Three performance cars. Image posted by Otakusquadpodcast on Instagram.

Is the NSX GT3 a sign of things to come by Polyphony? With no firm release date for Gran Turismo Sport, it certainly seems like there’s time for a surprise or two before gamers have the game in their hands.